As he had guessed, the leader entered the building and turned toward the staircase where Cheon Areum was standing and looking at him. Startled, he stopped in his tracks, but then his gaze shifted below eye level, and a mocking smirk framed his face.
"Of course, you spend the night in someone else’s bed like the whore you are..."
".....Why are you here?"
As always, he could only come up with perverted insults. Cheon Areum glared at him, speaking with a detached tone. The fact that he had decided to come over knowing his little brother was at home too made it clear he wasn’t here just to belittle him.
"Do you even know who you messed with? Gunwoo’s my cousin and I still fear his family... what exactly did you do to him?"
Cornering him with hands on both sides of his face, he spoke in a low voice. Cheon Areum’s back pressed against the wall as he clenched his fists.
"He can’t even go to the bathroom by himself... I’m just seriously, really curious—what did you do to him? I won’t tell anyone else, so how about you share that secret with me?"
"...."
"How about a deal then? I won’t mess with your brother if you just tell me."
"The car accident... was that you?"
"What? After not even visiting her in the hospital, you suddenly care about her wellbeing?"
The man laughed cunningly in his face as if he had heard a laughable joke.
"If you come for my family members, I should do the same, no? You should be thanking me—I stopped Gunwoo’s parents from taking any actions against you. Even your money-throwers won’t be able to help you out with that."
His fingers curled around the neckline of Cheon Areum’s sweatshirt, tugging at the fabric. His eyes roamed down Cheon Areum’s body, a smirk slowly creeping onto his face, clearly amused by what he saw. Cheon Areum slapped his hand away instantly.
"Keep your hands to yourself."
"What a beast—he ravaged you thoroughly... or is your slutty little body that good?"
"I have nothing to discuss with you. Leave."
"Afraid your brother will notice us? Such fierceness... your brother must be your weakness."
The man, realizing Cheon Areum was holding back, grew bold. He ran his fingers slowly along Cheon Areum’s nape, then reached for the hem of his sweatshirt, yanking it off his shoulder with clear intent. Cheon Areum’s expression twisted with irritation. He clicked his tongue and, without hesitation, grabbed the man by the hair and yanked his head back, wrenching him away. A short gasp followed as a handful of strands tore free from the man’s scalp—he had forgotten to adjust his strength. The man let out a pained grunt, but Cheon Areum didn’t flinch. His fingers were still tightly around the loose strands he’d torn out and ones that had yet to be weeded out.
"Ugh!"
The man screamed but immediately shut his mouth, not even struggling to free himself.
"If you know that much, then you must be prepared to go against me, right? If you want to even come close to my weakness, you’ll have to go through me first, you piece of shit."
But the moment he glanced up from the man, he saw Yoon Seoyul walking toward them. In a panic, he hurriedly let go of the hair. In that moment, the man grabbed Cheon Areum’s head and headbutted him with a thud. Cheon Areum covered his forehead with a hand, letting out a silent scream.
Fucking hell... if I knew it would hurt this much, I would’ve just hit his head on the wall beside me....
When Cheon Areum opened his eyes, still misted with tears from the sting of pain, the first thing he saw was a hand clamping down hard on his shoulder. In the blink of an eye, the man in front of him was snatched and hurled backward—so fast it would be invisible to unawakened humans. His eyes widened in shock as the man crashed into the wall behind him, the brutal impact sending bricks flying and clouds of white dust billowing into the air. The wall crumbled around the collapsed figure, groaning under the force of the blow. Cheon Areum’s breath caught in his throat. He was a B-Class... he’ll survive... probably. But Yoon Seoyul didn’t know that! What if he was just a regular person?
"Are you okay?"
Yoon Seoyul asked, scanning him with a quick turn of his head. He replied, still processing what was happening.
"Huh?... Oh yeah."
Seeing the man unresponsive, Yoon Seoyul spoke again.
"What was he saying? Did he threaten you?"
"Yes... no!"
Yoon Seoyul’s eyes narrowed as Cheon Areum changed his response in the same second. He couldn’t—wouldn’t—let the main character see him as ruthless again, much less as a villain. Cheon Areum anxiously explained, holding onto his arm.
"You remember Park Gunwoo, right? He’s Gunwoo’s cousin. He came to tell me that something happened to Gunwoo and he thinks I did it. As revenge, he also planned a car accident for my grandmother...."
The longer he went on, the colder the air around them became. He couldn’t tell if Yoon Seoyul was angry with him or at the man, so he added the last part as well.
"He came to get Rian this time because he’s the only family member I care about, and he wants to do the same to a family member of mine."
At the mention of Rian, Yoon Seoyul’s expression darkened as he turned toward the man once more. Before he could reach him, Cheon Areum released the man from his control. Without a moment’s pause, Yoon Seoyul grabbed the man by the neck and slammed him against the wall. The impact cracked the concrete, but he didn’t stop. With a deadly calm, Yoon Seoyul continued to push, driving the man deeper into the wall, chipping it further with each crushing second until a gaping hole caved inward from the force.